Fredrik Ljungberg - Early Life

Early Life

Ljungberg was born on 16 April 1977 in Vittsjö, Sweden to parents Roy Alve Erling Ljungberg, a civil engineer and owner of a construction and consultant business, and Elisabeth Bodil Ljungberg, a Swedish Labor Department worker. On 12 September 1984, the Ljungbergs had another son, Karl Oskar Filip. In 1982, the Ljungberg family left Vittsjö and moved to Halmstad. At first, the tenacious 5 year old would not have any part of moving. Fredrik argued with his parents that he did not want to live in Halmstad. His parents relented and took him to Halmstads BK where he played on the youth team under Olle Eriksson.

From the time he was 5–14, Ljungberg was coached by Eriksson. Eriksson’s impression of the youngster was that he was remarkably talented for his age and that he was considerate of other players noting that Ljungberg would pass the ball to his friends so that they would have a chance to score. Ljungberg credits Eriksson for having a profound effect on his career as well as Brazilian football player, Sócrates. Also in his youth, he enjoyed playing ice hockey and developed a talent for handball; he was eventually called up to the national handball team, but decided to focus his attentions on football.

Ljungberg did well in academic subjects as well as sports. When he finished 9th grade his marks averaged 4.1 on the 5 point scale. At 18, Ljungberg decided to attend university to study information technology and economics but struggled to balance the hectic academic timetable with the physically demanding commitments of professional football. Eventually, he quit university to concentrate on his football career.